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Benjamin Løzninger is an extremely interesting fellow who makes extremely interesting music. He began his present project, Løzninger, in 2004, when his daughter (who appears sampled on many of his tracks) was born. Before that, according to his bio, "An unverified rumor claims he is an active member of the cult french mysterious-masked collective Oslø Telescopic, famous for their crazy musical debut and graphic trilogy, for having kidnapped the famous French indie singer Dominique A and for their hysterical shows in Europe." I haven't a clue who or what that is, but he may have been a part of it. Regardless, his current music is neither crazy nor hysterical, but beautifully-crafted folk-rock with a bit of a strange edge to it.
His latest work, the Crossweek EP, available in an extremely limited edition of 100 copies from Spain's Moonpalace Records, is a deft album of lovely lyrics coveyed in Løzninger's soft, deep shuffle of a voice over music that is primarily composed and driven by acoustic guitar in traditional singer/songwriter style...but lying beneath and around that simple combination of vocals and guitar are all manner of interesting beats, synth samples, and odd little bits of audiosculpture that give the EP a very unique style. This is most definitely not an example of that clumsy attempt at combining indie-rock with electronic elements called "indietronica," but clearly a singer/songwriter-style EP given a slightly-tilted edge by Løzninger's looped acoustic beats, electric guitar flourishes, occasional samples, and expert production. Løzninger is a genius with panning, arranging musical elements in his tracks so that the complete sonic space defined by two stereo speakers is filled with sharp, clean elements that balance beautifully. You really don't see that much in music these days, especially this type of music.
For example, track 6, "October's Back," is a deceptively simple arrangement composed mostly of Løzninger's voice and acoustic guitar. Your basic singer/songwriter type of track, right? But then you noticed the looped static that introduces it creeping from one speaker to the next, the arpeggiated electric guitar softly sparking in your right speakers, the banjo plucking that fills the entire stereo field, the light cymbal percussion in the left, and finally the layered vocals that give the song a depth unheard of in folk music. The EP is short, clocking in at only 25 minutes, but substantial. The production is amazing, and the lyrics catchy and memorable (especially "Timeback," with its odd "hypnotized by your underwear" hook). Best of all, the tracks are all very varied in composition: all built around the straightforward voice-plus-acoustic-guitar-accompaniment formula, but expanded beyond that with all manner of neat little sound samples, percussion, and other instrumentation.
If you're lucky enough to live in Spain or have a lot more money than I do, you can check out Benjamin Løzninger at the following dates:
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Jul 24 2008 11:45P Universal Exhibition 2008 / Zaragoza
Jul 25 2008 11:45P Universal Exhibition 2008 / Zaragoza
Jul 26 2008 11:45P Universal Exhibition 2008 / Zaragoza
Aug 28 2008 7:00P Hotel de Vogüe / DIJON
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